"The measure of a Life is its Service."
February 2, 2010
SHSU Media Contacts: Julia May
A collection of memorabilia from 100 years of Boy Scout history will be on display in the exhibit gallery of the Katy and E. Don Walker Education Center at the Sam Houston Memorial Museum Feb. 8-28.
The exhibit is a part of activities that will take place during February to commemorate the founding of the Boy Scouts of America in 1910.
Among the artifacts are uniforms, handbooks and manuals, scarves, badges, pins and patches, along with a number of miscellaneous items such as official membership cards and letters, many of which have been carefully preserved in frames and shadow boxes. Also included are newspaper clippings and photographs, as well as a display of Norman Rockwell Scout prints and an exhibit on Eagle Scouts of Texas.
Four benches in the middle of the room around a stack of wood will simulate gathering around a campfire, an activity that has been a beloved tradition for Boy Scouts throughout the organization’s history.
The exhibit is “Huntsville-centric,” according to Will Oliver, SHSU criminal justice professor and chairman of the 100th Boy Scouts of America Celebration Committee for Huntsville.
However, a number of the items have been donated by individuals who were Boy Scouts in other parts of the country, he said.
“In November, we put the word out about the upcoming display to the community,” said Oliver, the father of two sons who are Scouts.
“We received items from men who are currently living in Huntsville but were Scouts in other states,” he said. “So we have things from New York to California.”
Oliver noted that the Sam Houston State University and Huntsville communities had also given the celebration “incredible support” by providing such things as donations, cakes, signs and publicity, and display cases for the exhibit at the Walker Education Center.
In addition to the exhibit, other activities will take place on Saturday (Feb. 6), including a parade from First United Methodist Church on Sam Houston Avenue to the Josey Lodge, the rededication of the Josey Lodge in honor of the facility’s 75th anniversary, all-day activities on the grounds of the lodge, and a banquet for Scouts and their families at the Lowman Student Center that evening.
The 100-year celebration exhibit will be revealed at 6 p.m. on Monday (Feb. 8), with an opening ceremony in the lobby of the Walker Education Center and a ribbon-cutting.
The public is invited to attend. For more information, contact Oliver at 936.294.4173.
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"The measure of a Life is its Service."